Master disk, master disk mounting method, and master disk removal method

ABSTRACT

A master disk which simulates a tire and is used at the time of confirmation or correction of measurement accuracy of a geometry measuring device for measuring the surface shape of a tire, of a tire testing machine, includes: a simulated tire section simulating a tire; a lower tubular section having a cylindrical shape, in which the tip side thereof is connected to the lower end side of the simulated tire section so as to be coaxial with the simulated tire section and a guide surface inclined in a tapered shape so as to have a larger diameter toward the base end side is formed on the base end side of an inner peripheral surface; and a neck section and a flange section which are provided on the upper end side of the simulated tire section and detachably engaged with test rim moving and exchanging means of a tire holding device of the tire testing machine.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a master disk which simulates a tireand is used at the time of confirmation or correction of the measurementaccuracy of a geometry measuring device for measuring the surface shapeof a tire, of a tire testing machine, a method of mounting the masterdisk on a spindle of a tire holding device of the tire testing machine,and a method of removing the master disk from the spindle.

BACKGROUND ART

With respect to tires for a vehicle or the like, after manufacturingthereof, a shape inspection of inspecting the presence or absence of adefect by measuring a surface shape such as concavity and convexity orundulation is performed in a tire testing machine. As a geometrymeasuring device which is used for measurement of the surface shape ofsuch a tire, for example, a geometry measuring device made so as to beable to inspect the presence or absence of a defect of the surface shapesuch as concavity and convexity or undulation of a tire by measuring thetire with a laser displacement meter or the like while irradiating thetire with a laser beam while rotating a spindle of a tire holding deviceof a tire testing machine, after the tire is held by a test rim mountedon the spindle, is known (refer to PTL 1 below).

In such a tire shape measuring device, if the above-described inspectionis performed by a specified number of times or for a specified period oftime in order to maintain measurement accuracy, confirmation orcorrection of the measurement accuracy is performed by mounting atire-simulated master disk instead of the test rim on the spindle andmeasuring the surface shape of the master disk.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

[P T L 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2014-202676

[P T L 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2013-104744

[P T L 3] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2011-174839

[PTL 4] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2013-142674

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

When performing confirmation or correction of the measurement accuracyof the tire shape measuring device as described above, since a workermanually mounts the master disk on the spindle of the tire holdingdevice of the tire testing machine or removes the master disk from thespindle, a lot of time and effort are required for master disk mountingwork or master disk removal work, and thus a great load is applied tothe worker, and furthermore, a time when the work of inspecting thesurface shape of the tire is temporarily stopped is long, causing adecrease in working efficiency.

Therefore, the present invention has an object to provide a master diskin which mounting work or removal work can be easily carried out, amethod of mounting the master disk, and a method of removing the masterdisk.

Solution to Problem

In order to solve the above-described problem, according to a firstaspect of the present invention, there is provided a master disk whichsimulates a tire and is used at the time of confirmation or correctionof measurement accuracy of a geometry measuring device for measuring asurface shape of a tire, of a tire testing machine, the master diskbeing able to be mounted on and removed from automatic exchange means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the masterdisk according to the first aspect of the present invention, the masterdisk includes: a simulated tire section simulating a tire; a firsttubular section having a cylindrical shape, in which a tip side thereofis connected to one end side in an axial direction of the simulated tiresection so as to be coaxial with the simulated tire section and a guidesurface inclined in a tapered shape so as to have a larger diametertoward a base end side is formed on the base end side of an innerperipheral surface; and an engaging member which is provided on theother end side in the axial direction of the simulated tire section anddetachably engaged with the automatic exchange means.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the master diskaccording to the second aspect of the present invention, the engagingmember includes a neck section disposed on the other end side in theaxial direction of the simulated tire section so as to be coaxial withthe simulated tire section, and a flange section coaxially provided atthe neck section and having a larger diameter than the neck section.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the masterdisk according to the third aspect of the present invention, theengaging member further includes a second tubular section having acylindrical shape, in which a base end side thereof is connected to theother end side in the axial direction of the simulated tire section soas to be coaxial with the simulated tire section, and a lid sectionwhich is provided on a tip side of the second tubular section and onwhich the neck section is mounted.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the master diskaccording to any one of the second to fourth aspects of the presentinvention, the automatic exchange means is test rim moving andexchanging means of a tire holding device of the tire testing machine.

Further, according to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a master disk mounting method which is a method of mounting themaster disk according to the fifth aspect of the present invention on aspindle of a tire holding device of a tire testing machine, including:transferring the master disk such that a base end side of the firsttubular section of the master disk is fitted on the spindle, after thetest rim moving and exchanging means of the tire holding device of thetire testing machine is engaged with the engaging member of the masterdisk so as to hold the master disk placed on a stocker frame of a rimstocker of the tire testing machine.

Further, according to a seventh aspect of the present invention, thereis provided a master disk removal method which is a method of removingthe master disk according to the fifth aspect of the present inventionmounted on a spindle of a tire holding device of a tire testing machinefrom the spindle, including: transferring the master disk such that abase end side of the first tubular section of the master disk is placedon a stocker frame of a rim stocker of the tire testing machine, afterthe test rim moving and exchanging means of the tire holding device ofthe tire testing machine is engaged with the engaging member of themaster disk so as to hold the master disk mounted on the spindle.

Further, according to an eighth aspect of the present invention, thereis provided a tire shape inspection method including repeatedlyperforming: a test rim mounting step of transferring a test rim placedon a stocker frame of a rim stocker of a tire testing machine by testrim moving and exchanging means of a tire holding device of the tiretesting machine such that the test rim is held by the tire holdingdevice; an inspection step of performing inspection of a tire by holdingthe tire with the test rim of the tire holding device and measuring asurface shape of the tire with a geometry measuring device; a test rimremoval step of transferring the test rim of the tire holding device bythe test rim moving and exchanging means of the tire holding device suchthat the test rim of the tire holding device is placed on the stockerframe of the rim stocker, after the inspection step is performed by aspecified number of times or for a specified period of time; a masterdisk mounting step of mounting the master disk according to the fifthaspect of the present invention on the spindle of the tire holdingdevice from the stocker frame of the rim stocker by using the mountingmethod according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, withrespect to the tire holding device from which the test rim is removed; aconfirmation and correction step of performing confirmation orcorrection of measurement accuracy of the geometry measuring device bymeasuring the master disk mounted on the spindle of the tire holdingdevice with the geometry measuring device; and a master disk removalstep of removing the master disk mounted on the spindle of the tireholding device from the spindle by using the removal method according tothe seventh aspect of the present invention and transferring the masterdisk to the stocker frame, after the confirmation and correction step isperformed.

Advantageous Effects of Invention

According to the present invention, since the master disk can be mountedon and removed from automatic exchange means, master disk mounting workor master disk removal work can be performed with the automatic exchangemeans. Therefore, it is not necessary for a worker to manually performmaster disk mounting or removal, and thus it is possible to remarkablyreduce a load on the worker. Further, a time when the work of inspectingthe surface shape of the tire is interrupted can be greatly shortened,and thus it is possible to remarkably suppress a decrease in workingefficiency. As a result, it is possible to easily perform the masterdisk mounting work or the master disk removal work, and thus it ispossible to greatly improve the efficiency of the work of inspecting thesurface shape of the tire.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a schematic structure of a mainembodiment of a master disk according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic structure of a main section ofa main embodiment of a tire testing machine.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. 2 and viewedin the direction of an arrow.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a schematic structure of a mainembodiment of a test rim.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a method of mounting the master diskof FIG. 1 and a method of removing the master disk.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a method of mounting the master diskof FIG. 1 and a method of removing the master disk.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of a master disk, a method of mounting the master disk, anda method of removing the master disk according to the present inventionwill be described based on the drawings. However, the present inventionis not limited to only the embodiments which are described based on thedrawings.

Main Embodiments

Main embodiments of the master disk, the method of mounting the masterdisk, and the method of removing the master disk according to thepresent invention will be described below on the basis of FIGS. 1 to 6.

The master disk according to this embodiment is a master disk 10 whichsimulates a tire and is used at the time of confirmation or correctionof the measurement accuracy of a geometry measuring device for measuringthe surface shape of a tire, of a tire testing machine, the master disk10 being provided with: a simulated tire section 11 simulating a tireand oriented such that an axial direction thereof is directed in anup-and-down direction; a lower tubular section 12 that is a firsttubular section having a cylindrical shape, in which the tip side (theupper end side) thereof is connected to one end side (the lower endside) in the axial direction of the simulated tire section 11 so as tobe coaxial with the simulated tire section 11 and a guide surface 12 ainclined in a tapered shape so as to have a larger diameter toward thebase end side (the lower end side) is formed on the base end side (thelower end side) of an inner peripheral surface; an upper tubular section13 that is a second tubular section having a cylindrical shape, in whichthe base end side (the lower end side) thereof is connected to the otherend side (the upper end side) in the axial direction of the simulatedtire section 11 so as to be coaxial with the simulated tire section 11;a disk-shaped lid section 14 coaxially mounted on the tip side (theupper end side) of the upper tubular section 13 so as to close the tipside (the upper end side) of the upper tubular section 13; a columnarneck section 15 disposed on the other end side (the upper end side) inthe axial direction of the simulated tire section 11 so as to be coaxialwith the simulated tire section 11, and coaxially mounted on the lidsection 14; and a disk-shaped flange section 16 coaxially mounted on anupper portion of the neck section 15 and having a larger diameter thanthe neck section 15, as shown in FIG. 1.

In the master disk 10 according to this embodiment, an engaging memberis configured with the upper tubular section 13, the lid section 14, theneck section 15, the flange section 16, and the like.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a tire testing machine 100 accordingto this embodiment is provided with: a tire holding device 110 on whicha test rim 20 is detachably mounted and which detachably holds androtates a tire by the test rim 20; a rim stocker 120 which detachablyholds a plurality of test rims 20 corresponding to various sizes oftires; and a geometry measuring device 130 which measures the surfaceshape of the tire held on the test rim 20 of the tire holding device110.

As shown in FIG. 4, the test rim 20 is composed of a detachable lowerrim body 21 and an upper rim body 24.

The lower rim body 21 is provided with: a lower rim section 22 which isoriented such that an axial direction thereof is directed in theup-and-down direction, and is detachably fitted to the lower side of theinner periphery of the tire; and a lower tubular section 23 having acylindrical shape, in which the tip side (the upper end side) thereof isconnected to the lower end side that is one end side in the axialdirection of the lower rim section 22 so as to be coaxial with the lowerrim section 22 and a guide surface 23 a inclined in a tapered shape soas to have a larger diameter toward the base end side (the lower endside) is formed on the base end side (the lower end side) of an innerperipheral surface (specifically, refer to the above-described PTL 2 orthe like).

The upper rim body 24 is provided with: an upper rim section 25 which isoriented such that an axial direction thereof is directed in theup-and-down direction, and is detachably fitted to the upper side of theinner periphery of the tire; an upper tubular section 26 having acylindrical shape, in which the base end side (the lower end side)thereof is connected to the upper end side that is the other end side inthe axial direction of the upper rim section 25 so as to be coaxial withthe upper rim section 25; a disk-shaped lid section 27 coaxially mountedon the tip side (the upper end side) of the upper tubular section 26 soas to close the tip side (the upper end side) of the upper tubularsection 26; a columnar neck section 28 coaxially mounted on the lidsection 27; and a disk-shaped flange section 29 coaxially mounted on anupper portion of the neck section 28 and having a larger diameter thanthe neck section 28 (specifically, refer to the above-described PTL 2 orthe like).

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in the tire holding device 110, a spindle 111in which an axial direction thereof is directed in the up-and-downdirection is rotatably provided on a pedestal 110B of a base 110A. Aguide portion 111 a inclined in a tapered shape so as to have a largerdiameter toward the lower side is formed on the lower side of the outerperipheral surface of the spindle 111, as shown in FIG. 6.

As shown in FIG. 2, a guide rail 112 in which a longitudinal directionthereof is directed in the up-and-down direction is mounted on thepedestal 110B side of a frame 110C provided to be erected on the base110A. A slider 113 capable of sliding along the longitudinal directionof the guide rail 112 is provided at the guide rail 112. The base endside of a support 114 oriented such that the tip side thereof is locatedabove the spindle 111 is connected to the slider 113.

A ball screw shaft 115 in which an axial direction thereof is directedin the up-and-down direction is mounted on the support 114. The ballscrew shaft 115 is supported, at an upper end portion and a lower endportion thereof, on the frame 110C through brackets 110Ca and 110Cb, andis made so as to be able to move the support 114 up and down by beingrotated by an operation of a drive motor 115 a.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, a pair of guide rails 116 in which alongitudinal direction thereof is directed along a radial direction ofthe spindle 111 is mounted on the lower surface on the tip side of thesupport 114 so as to be located on a straight line centered on theposition of a shaft center of the spindle 111. A slider 117 slidablealong each of the guide rails 116 is provided at each of the guide rails116. The base end side of each of a pair of engaging arms 118 orientedsuch that the tip side thereof faces in a direction of the shaft centerof the spindle 111 is mounted on each of the sliders 117 through aconnecting block 117 a.

The tip side of each of rods 119 a of a pair of air cylinders 119 inwhich an axial direction thereof is directed along the longitudinaldirection of the guide rail 116 is connected to the connecting block 117a. Each of the air cylinders 119 is supported on the support 114 througha bracket 114 a.

That is, a configuration is made such that if the rods 119 a of the aircylinders 119 are extended, the tip sides of the paired engaging arms118 move so as to approach each other and if the rods 119 a of the aircylinders 119 are contracted, the tip sides of the paired engaging arms118 move away from each other.

In the tire holding device 110 according to this embodiment, upper rimbody holding means is configured with the support 114, the guide rails116, the sliders 117, the engaging arms 118, the air cylinders 119, andthe like, upper rim body lifting and lowering means is configured withthe guide rail 112, the slider 113, the ball screw shaft 115, and thelike, and test rim moving and exchanging means is configured with theupper rim body holding means, the upper rim body lifting and loweringmeans, and the like.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in the rim stocker 120, a guide rail 121 inwhich a longitudinal direction thereof is directed toward the spindle111 is laid on a base frame 120A. A slider 122 slidable along thelongitudinal direction of the guide rail 121 is provided on the guiderail 121. A support table 123 is mounted on the slider 122 through asupport plate 123 a. A turning shaft 124 in which an axial directionthereof is directed in the up- and-down direction is rotatably supportedon the support table 123. A sprocket 126 a is coaxially mounted on theturning shaft 124.

Further, a servomotor 125 having a drive shaft 125 a in which an axialdirection thereof is directed in the up-and-down direction is mounted onthe support table 123. A sprocket 126 b is coaxially mounted on thedrive shaft 125 a of the servomotor 125. An endless chain 126 c is woundaround the sprockets 126 a and 126 b, and the drive shaft 125 a isrotated by an operation of the servomotor 125, whereby the turning shaft124 can be rotated through the sprockets 126 a and 126 b and the endlesschain 126 c.

A stocker frame 127 which supports the test rim 20 and the like ismounted around the turning shaft 124 through a connecting member 124 a,and a plurality of (in this embodiment, four) stocker frames 127 aredisposed at predetermined intervals along a circumferential direction ofthe turning shaft 124. A pedestal 127 a is provided on each of thestocker frames 127.

That is, a configuration is made such that the stocker frame 127 whichis located above the spindle 111 side of the support table 123 can beselectively switched by rotating the turning shaft 124 by rotating thedrive shaft 125 a of the servomotor 125 and the stocker frame 127 whichis located on the spindle 111 side of the support table 123 can bepositioned above the spindle 111 by moving the support table 123 towardthe spindle 111 side along the guide rail 121 through the slider 122.

In the rim stocker 120 according to this embodiment, advancing andretreating means is configured with the guide rail 121, the slider 122,the support table 123, and the like, and switching means is configuredwith the turning shaft 124, the servomotor 125, the sprockets 126 a and126 b, the endless chain 126 c, the stocker frame 127, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 3, the geometry measuring device 130 is disposed in thevicinity of the tire holding device 110 and is made so as to be able tomeasure the surface shape such as concavity and convexity or undulationof a tire held on the spindle 111 through the test rim 20 by extendingand operating the tip side so as to be located in the vicinity of thespindle 111 of the tire holding device 110 (refer to, for example, PTL 1or the like).

Next, a tire shape inspection method according to this embodiment usingthe tire testing machine 100 as described above will be described.

First of all, the master disk 10 is placed on the pedestal 127 a of onestocker frame 127 of the rim stocker 120 of the tire testing machine100, and on the other hand, the test rim 20 corresponding to each ofvarious sizes of tires is placed on the pedestal 127 a of the otherstocker frame 127 of the rim stocker 120 of the tire testing machine100.

Then, when carrying out the inspection of the surface shape of the tire,the turning shaft 124 is rotated by an operation of the servomotor 125such that the stocker frame 127 of the rim stocker 120, on which thetest rim 20 corresponding to the tire to be inspected is placed, islocated on the spindle 111 side of the tire holding device 110, and thesupport table 123 is slid along the guide rail 121 through the slider122 such that the stocker frame 127 is located above the spindle 111 ofthe tire holding device 110.

Next, if the ball screw shaft 115 is rotated by an operation of thedrive motor 115 a so as to lower the engaging arms 118 of the tireholding device 110, the neck section 28 of the upper rim body 24 of thetest rim 20 on the stocker frame 127 is located between the facing tipsof the engaging arms 118.

Subsequently, if each of the rods 119 a of the air cylinders 119 isextended, the tip sides of the paired engaging arms 118 clamps the necksection 28 of the upper rim body 24 and the upper surfaces of theengaging arms 118 are engaged with the lower surface of the flangesection 29 of the upper rim body 24.

Continuously, after the test rim 20 is removed from the pedestal 127 aof the stocker frame 127 by being lifted through the engaging arms 118by rotating the ball screw shaft 115 by an operation of the drive motor115 a so as to raise the engaging arms 118, if the support table 123 isslid along the guide rail 121 through the slider 122 so as to bereturned to the original position thereof, the ball screw shaft 115 isrotated by an operation of the drive motor 115 a so as to lower theengaging arms 118 again, whereby the test rim 20 is lowered through theengaging arms 118, and thus the lower tubular section 23 of the lowerrim body 21 is fitted and mounted on the spindle 111.

At this time, since the tapered guide portion 111 a having a largerdiameter toward the lower side is formed on the lower side of the outerperipheral surface of the spindle 111 and the tapered guide surface 23 ahaving a larger diameter toward the lower end side is formed on thelower end side of the inner peripheral surface of the lower tubularsection 23 of the lower rim body 21 of the test rim 20, it is possibleto easily perform mounting of the test rim 20 on the spindle 111 and itis possible to easily perform alignment of the test rim 20 with respectto the spindle 111.

Next, the upper rim body 24 is separated from the lower rim body 21 bylifting only the upper rim body 24 through the engaging arms 118 byrotating the ball screw shaft 115 by an operation of the drive motor 115a so as to separate the lower rim body 21 and the upper rim body 24 ofthe test rim 20 from each other and raise the engaging arms 118 again(specifically, refer to PTL 2 or the like).

In this way, the test rim 20 having been placed on the stocker frame 127of the rim stocker 120 is held by the tire holding device 110 (the aboveis a test rim mounting step).

Then, after a tire is conveyed to above the spindle 111 by a conveyor orthe like and the lower rim section 22 of the lower rim body 21 is fittedto the inner periphery of the tire, the upper rim section 25 of theupper rim body 24 is fitted to the inner periphery of the tire byrotating the ball screw shaft 115 by an operation of the drive motor 115a so as to lower the engaging arms 118, and the upper rim body 24 andthe lower rim body 21 are integrated (specifically, refer to PTL 2 orthe like), and thereafter, the rods 119 a of the air cylinders 119 arecontracted to move the tip sides of the paired engaging arms 118 so asto move away from each other, whereby the engaging arms 118 areseparated from the neck section 28 and the flange section 29 of theupper rim body 24.

In this way, the tire is held on the test rim 20 mounted on the spindle111.

Subsequently, the geometry measuring device 130 is operated so as to beextended and the spindle 111 rotates, whereby the surface shape such asconcavity and convexity or undulation of the tire is measured, and thusthe presence or absence of a defect on the surface of the tire isinspected (the above is an inspection step).

In this way, if the surface shape of the tire is measured and theinspection of the presence or absence of a defect is ended, the geometrymeasuring device 130 is operated so as to be contracted, thereby beingreturned to the original state, each of the rods 119 a of the aircylinders 119 is extended, thereby clamping the neck section 28 of theupper rim body 24 again at the tip sides of the paired engaging arms118, and the upper surfaces of the engaging arms 118 are engaged withthe lower surface of the flange section 29 of the upper rim body 24again, and thereafter, the upper rim body 24 and the lower rim body 21are separated from each other (specifically, refer to PTL 2 or thelike), and the upper rim body 24 is separated from the lower rim body 21and the tire by lifting only the upper rim body 24 through the engagingarms 118 by rotating the ball screw shaft 115 by an operation of thedrive motor 115 a so as to raise the engaging arms 118 again.

Then, after the tire is carried out from above the spindle 111 by aconveyor or the like and removed from the lower rim section 22 of thelower rim body 21, a new tire is conveyed to above the spindle 111.

Hereinafter, by repeating the above-described operations, it is possibleto consecutively inspect the tires one after another.

If the inspection of the surface shape of the tire is performed by aspecified number of times or for a specified period of time, instead ofthe test rim 20, the master disk 10 is mounted on the spindle 111 of thetire holding device 110.

Specifically, first, the lower rim body 21 and the upper rim body 24 ofthe test rim 20 held by the spindle 111 and the engaging arms 118 of thetire holding device 110 are transferred and returned to the pedestal 127a of the stocker frame 127 initially disposed, of the rim stocker 120,by the procedure reverse to the above (the above is a test rim removalstep).

Then, after the turning shaft 124 is rotated by an operation of theservomotor 125 such that the stocker frame 127 with the master disk 10placed thereon is located above the spindle 111 of the tire holdingdevice 110, the neck section 15 of the master disk 10 is located betweenthe facing tips of the engaging arms 118 by rotating the ball screwshaft 115 by an operation of the drive motor 115 a so as to lower theengaging arms 118 of the tire holding device 110.

Subsequently, the rods 119 a of the air cylinders 119 are extended,thereby clamping the neck section 15 of the master disk 10 at the tipsides of the paired engaging arms 118 and causing the upper surfaces ofthe engaging arms 118 to be engaged with the lower surface of the flangesection 16 of the master disk 10 (refer to FIG. 5).

Continuously, after the master disk 10 is lifted and removed from abovethe pedestal 127 a of the stocker frame 127 through the engaging arms118 by rotating the ball screw shaft 115 by an operation of the drivemotor 115 a so as to raise the engaging arms 118, if the support table123 is slid along the guide rail 121 through the slider 122 so as to bereturned to the original position, the ball screw shaft 115 is rotatedby an operation of the drive motor 115 a so as to lower the engagingarms 118 again, whereby the master disk 10 is lowered through theengaging arms 118, and thus the lower tubular section 12 is fitted andmounted on the spindle 111 (refer to FIG. 6).

At this time, since the tapered guide portion 111 a having a largerdiameter toward the lower side is formed on the lower side of the outerperipheral surface of the spindle 111 and the tapered guide surface 12 ahaving a larger diameter toward the lower end side is formed on thelower end side of the inner peripheral surface of the lower tubularsection 12 of the master disk 10, it is possible to easily performmounting of the master disk 10 on the spindle 111 and it is possible toeasily perform alignment of the master disk 10 with respect to thespindle 111.

Next, the engaging arms 118 are separated from the neck section 15 andthe flange section 16 of the master disk 10 by moving the tip sides ofthe paired engaging arms 118 so as to be separated from each other bycontracting each of the rods 119 a of the air cylinders 119.

In this way, the master disk 10 having been placed on the stocker frame127 of the rim stocker 120 is mounted on the spindle 111 of the tireholding device 110 (the above is a master disk mounting step).

Then, confirmation or correction of the measurement accuracy of thegeometry measuring device 130 is performed by measuring the simulatedtire section 11 of the master disk 10 with the geometry measuring device130 by extending and operating the geometry measuring device 130 androtating the spindle 111 (the above is a confirmation and correctionstep).

After the confirmation or correction of the measurement accuracy of thegeometry measuring device 130 is performed in this way, instead of themaster disk 10, the test rim 20 corresponding to a tire to be inspectedfrom now is mounted on the spindle 111 of the tire holding device 110again.

That is, after the master disk 10 mounted on the spindle 111 of the tireholding device 110 is transferred and returned to the pedestal 127 a ofthe stocker frame 127 initially disposed, of the rim stocker 120 byremoving it from the spindle 111 by the procedure reverse to the above(the above is a master disk removal step), the above-described procedureis repeatedly performed so as to mount the test rim 20 corresponding toa tire to be inspected on the spindle 111 of the tire holding device 110again.

In this way, it is possible to continuously inspect the tiresconsecutively while maintaining the inspection accuracy.

That is, in the master disk 10 according to this embodiment, the masterdisk 10 is provided with the engaging members 13 to 16 which aredetachably engaged with the test rim moving and exchanging means 112 to119 of the tire holding device 110, whereby the master disk 10 can beautomatically exchanged for the test rim 20 between the stocker frame127 of the rim stocker 120 and the spindle 111 of the tire holdingdevice 110.

For this reason, it is not necessary for a worker to manually performmounting or removal of the master disk 10 on or from the spindle 111 ofthe tire holding device 110 of the tire testing machine 100, and thus itis possible to remarkably reduce a load on the worker, and it ispossible to greatly shorten a time when the work of inspecting thesurface shape of a tire is temporarily stopped, and thus it is possibleto remarkably suppress a decrease in working efficiency.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to easily carryout mounting work or removal work of the master disk 10 with respect tothe spindle 111 of the tire holding device 110 of the tire testingmachine 100, and thus it is possible to greatly improve the efficiencyof the inspection work.

Further, since it is not necessary for a worker to manually performmounting or removal of the master disk 10 with respect to the spindle111, weight limitation of the master disk 10 can be greatly relaxed, andthus it is possible to variously set the conditions of the master disk10.

Further, since it is possible to shorten a time when the inspection workis temporarily stopped, it becomes possible to relatively frequentlyperform confirmation or correction of the measuring accuracy of thegeometry measuring device 130, and thus it is possible to more reliablysuppress a decrease in the accuracy of the geometry measuring device130.

Other Embodiments

In the embodiment described above, the engaging member of the masterdisk 10 is configured with the upper tubular section 13, the lid section14, the neck section 15, the flange section 16, and the like. However,as another embodiment, for example, it is also possible to configure theengaging member with only the neck section and the flange section withthe upper tubular section and the lid section omitted.

Further, in the embodiment described above, the master disk 10 isautomatically exchanged by using the test rim moving and exchangingmeans 112 to 119 of the tire holding device 110 of the tire testingmachine 100. However, as another embodiment, for example, it is alsopossible to perform automatic exchange by installing a dedicatedexchange device which performs only the exchange of the master disk 10.

However, if the master disk 10 is automatically exchanged by using thetest rim moving and exchanging means 112 to 119 of the tire holdingdevice 110 of the tire testing machine 100, as in the embodimentdescribed above, compared to a case of performing automatic exchange byinstalling a dedicated exchange device which performs only the exchangeof the master disk 10, there is very little waste in terms of not onlyinstallation space but also cost, and therefore, it is very preferable.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

According to the master disk, the master disk mounting method, and themaster disk removal method according to the present invention, themounting work or the removal work can be easily carried out and theefficiency of the inspection work can be greatly improved. Therefore,the master disk, the master disk mounting method, and the master diskremoval method according to the present invention can be verybeneficially used in the tire manufacturing industry.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

10: master disk

11: simulated tire section

12: lower tubular section

12 a: guide surface

13: upper tubular section

14: lid section

15: neck section

16: flange section

20: test rim

21: lower rim body

22: lower rim section

23: lower tubular section

23 a: guide surface

24: upper rim body

25: upper rim section

26: upper tubular section

27: lid section

28: neck section

29: flange section

100: tire testing machine

110: tire holding device

110A: base

110B: pedestal

110C: frame

110Ca, 110Cb: bracket

111: spindle

111 a: guide portion

112: guide rail

113: slider

114: support

114 a: bracket

115: ball screw shaft

115 a: drive motor

116: guide rail

117: slider

117 a: connecting block

118: engaging arm

119: air cylinder

119 a: rod

120: rim stocker

120A: base frame

121: guide rail

122: slider

123: support table

123 a: support plate

124: turning shaft

124 a: connecting member

125: servomotor

125 a: drive shaft

126 a, 126 b: sprocket

126 c: endless chain

127: stocker frame

127 a: pedestal

130: geometry measuring device

1. A master disk which simulates a tire and is used at the time ofconfirmation or correction of measurement accuracy of a geometrymeasuring device for measuring a surface shape of a tire, of a tiretesting machine, the master disk being able to be mounted on and removedfrom automatic exchange means.
 2. The master disk according to claim 1,comprising: a simulated tire section simulating a tire; a first tubularsection having a cylindrical shape, in which a tip side thereof isconnected to one end side in an axial direction of the simulated tiresection so as to be coaxial with the simulated tire section and a guidesurface inclined in a tapered shape so as to have a larger diametertoward a base end side is formed on the base end side of an innerperipheral surface; and an engaging member which is provided on theother end side in the axial direction of the simulated tire section anddetachably engaged with the automatic exchange means.
 3. The master diskaccording to claim 2, wherein the engaging member includes a necksection disposed on the other end side in the axial direction of thesimulated tire section so as to be coaxial with the simulated tiresection, and a flange section coaxially provided at the neck section andhaving a larger diameter than the neck section.
 4. The master diskaccording to claim 3, wherein the engaging member further includes asecond tubular section having a cylindrical shape, in which a base endside thereof is connected to the other end side in the axial directionof the simulated tire section so as to be coaxial with the simulatedtire section, and a lid section which is provided on a tip side of thesecond tubular section and on which the neck section is mounted.
 5. Themaster disk according to claim 2, wherein the automatic exchange meansis test rim moving and exchanging means of a tire holding device of thetire testing machine.
 6. A master disk mounting method which is a methodof mounting the master disk according to claim 5 on a spindle of a tireholding device of a tire testing machine, comprising: transferring themaster disk such that a base end side of the first tubular section ofthe master disk is fitted on the spindle, after the test rim moving andexchanging means of the tire holding device of the tire testing machineis engaged with the engaging member of the master disk so as to hold themaster disk placed on a stocker frame of a rim stocker of the tiretesting machine.
 7. A master disk removal method which is a method ofremoving the master disk according to claim 5 mounted on a spindle of atire holding device of a tire testing machine from the spindle,comprising: transferring the master disk such that a base end side ofthe first tubular section of the master disk is placed on a stockerframe of a rim stocker of the tire testing machine, after the test rimmoving and exchanging means of the tire holding device of the tiretesting machine is engaged with the engaging member of the master diskso as to hold the master disk mounted on the spindle.
 8. A tire shapeinspection method comprising repeatedly performing: a test rim mountingstep of transferring a test rim placed on a stocker frame of a rimstocker of a tire testing machine by test rim moving and exchangingmeans of a tire holding device of the tire testing machine such that thetest rim is held by the tire holding device; an inspection step ofperforming inspection of a tire by holding the tire with the test rim ofthe tire holding device and measuring a surface shape of the tire with ageometry measuring device; a test rim removal step of transferring thetest rim of the tire holding device by the test rim moving andexchanging means of the tire holding device such that the test rim ofthe tire holding device is placed on the stocker frame of the rimstocker, after the inspection step is performed by a specified number oftimes or for a specified period of time; a master disk mounting step ofmounting a master disk on the spindle of the tire holding device fromthe stocker frame of the rim stocker by transferring the master disksuch that a base end side of a first tubular section of the master diskis fitted on the spindle, after a test rim moving and exchanging meansof the tire holding device of the tire testing machine is engaged withan engaging member of the master disk so as to hold the master diskplaced on a stocker frame of a rim stocker of the tire testing machine,with respect to the tire holding device from which the test rim isremoved; a confirmation and correction step of performing confirmationor correction of measurement accuracy of the geometry measuring deviceby measuring the master disk mounted on the spindle of the tire holdingdevice with the geometry measuring device; and a master disk removalstep of removing the master disk mounted on the spindle of the tireholding device from the spindle by transferring the master disk suchthat a base end side of the first tubular section of the master disk isplaced on a stocker frame of a rim stocker of the tire testing machine,after the test rim moving and exchanging means of the tire holdingdevice of the tire testing machine is engaged with the engaging memberof the master disk so as to hold the master disk mounted on the spindleand transferring the master disk to the stocker frame, after theconfirmation and correction step is performed.